Though there are many compelling reasons to move to autonomous, electric vehicles and shared autonomous EV’s as a service, the one that everyone good with numbers can agree on is lower operating costs–not only lower fuel costs, but much lower parts and repairs, less maintenance, less accidents, injury and death, and of course less air and sound pollution and all the illness that flows from it. Who in the world, doesn’t want this?
This photo provided by Tesla shows the front of the new electric semitractor-trailer unveiled on Thursday, Nov. 16, 2017. The move fits with Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s stated goal for the company of accelerating the shift to sustainable transportation. (Tesla via AP)
Loblaw and Walmart see the appeal. Both have already put in orders for the game-changing new EV Semis unveiled by Tesla last week for production in 2019. See: Loblaw says it ordered 25 Tesla electric trucks, wants fully electric fleet by 2030:
“…the Tesla Semi requires no shifting for smooth acceleration and its brakes recover 98 per cent of kinetic energy to the battery.
“Overall, the Semi is more responsive, covers more miles than a diesel truck in the same amount of time, and more safely integrates with passenger car traffic,” it said on the company’s website.
Tesla says that a fully loaded Semi consumes less than two kilowatt-hours of energy per mile and has a range of about 800 kilometres. That could save owners at least US$200,000 in fuel costs over 1.6 million km.”
Meanwhile Volvo has promised to deliver Uber a fleet of self-driving taxis by 2019, as all the world’s auto manufacturers who were asleep at the A-EV gate, are now racing to catch up.
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